Best Two Out of Three

Part 22

Thursday, August 27, 2020
Daily's Place – Jacksonville, Florida

"Goddammit! We were that fucking close!"

Alex frowned as she helped Chuck limp over to the couch in their locker room, his knee wrapped in ice. Thankfully, he'd just tweaked it; but it didn't lessen the sting of their loss in the gauntlet match. Now, FTR would face Kenny and Adam for the AEW World Tag Team Championship next Saturday at All Out. The thought alone was enough to give her stress hives.

"I know," she frowned. "I'm sorry, Chuckie."

"You two were watching," Trent said to Alex and Orange as he collapsed onto a seat. "What happened with Hangman during our match against the Bucks? Neither of us saw it."

"Yeah, I was on the floor dealing with my fucking knee," Chuck confirmed, wincing as he adjusted himself on the couch. "I didn't even know he was there until after we won."

Alex stiffened. She exchanged a hesitant glance with Jim. She didn't want to tell them. Even though Chuck and Trent had lost the gauntlet, she didn't want to cheapen their win against Matt and Nick. But they deserved to know what had happened.

"Um, Nick was standing on the ring apron, and before he could do the Meltzer Driver, Adam came out of nowhere and grabbed his leg. He held onto him until you got the win."

Trent's eyes widened. "Shit. I guess he really isn't friends with Matt and Nick anymore."

"Yeah, I don't blame him," Alex breathed. And then, when all three of them looked at her, she realized she hadn't just thought it—she'd said it.

"Did something else happen?" Chuck asked, his brow furrowed. He seemed genuinely concerned. "You know, other than Matt and Nick generally being self-involved pricks."

"Oh, something else happened, alright," she returned. "Callie officially broke up with Adam."

That just seemed to confuse them further. "What does that have to do with the Bucks?" Trent pressed.

Alex ran a hand through her hair, anxious. For Adam's sake, she really didn't want to perpetuate any speculation about what might be going on between Matt and Callie. But, at this point, the situation was like Pandora's box—there was no containing it anymore.

"Callie showed up at the house on Monday and packed what she could and left," she explained. "And earlier tonight... Adam told me he found out from Britt gossiping to Penelope that she's staying with Matt."

There was a beat of shocked silence. Alex tensed, bracing for their reaction. And then Chuck gaped, "Callie broke up with Adam and now she's staying with Matt Jackson?"

She nodded again. "Apparently."

More silence. And then Jim said, "That's a clear violation of bro code."

"No shit," Trent added. "What an asshole."

"Of the highest order," Alex agreed. "After Adam did what he did, Matt came barging in here to scream at me about how I must have had something to do with it."

Trent blinked and shook his head, his eyebrows arched high on his forehead, like he didn't comprehend what she'd just said. "I'm sorry, what?"

Alex rolled her eyes. "Matt thinks I put Adam up to sabotaging them," she muttered.

"What?" Chuck shot. "Why?"

"Because he's a dick," she returned. "He said I had 'every reason' to do it and that I have Adam wrapped around my finger just like I do Kenny."